Static eliminator



June 2, 19%.

H. J. M COY STATIC ELIMINATOR 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 J72 yen for Me) Me00 V ATTogA/E Y6 Filed March 12,

Filed March 12, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l'rroe/vs m- Patented June 2, 1936LMZJQZ PA'E'T OFFIE 6 Claims.

This invention relates to static eliminators for paper handlingmachines. As is well known, considerable static electricity is generatedduring the handling of webs or sheets of paper, particularly duringmovement of the web or sheet in a paper-making machine or in a printingpress.

I am aware that attempts have been made to remove this staticelectricity, but none of the devices of others with which I amacquainted really removes it. For example, it has heretofore been thepractice to apply direct heat from a flame to a paper sheet, but I havefound that no dependable results can be obtained by such application. Ihave discovered that static electricity can be eliminated by supplyingheat by direct flame in combination with the application of hot air,over a relatively large area of the paper while it is traveling. I havealso found that the blasting of very hotair diagonally against the sheetin direction of its travel, so that it is spread over the entire surfaceof the sheet gives results not heretofore obtainable. I have also foundthat the application of this hot air blast forwardly of and adjacent themeans which applies flame heat, results in a more thorough staticelimination than any known to me, before this invention.

Features of the invention include the application of the heat of flameand of a heated blast of air simultaneously against a moving sheet; theapplication of the hot air blast adjacent and forwardly of the flame ina direction diagonally against the sheet; the application of the blastin a manner to prevent curling of the sheet as it travels; and themaintenance of a sheet or film of hot or warm air through which thesheet travels in a, manner to have heat applied at both sides.

Objects, features and advantages of the invention will be set forth inthe description of the drawings forming a part of this application, andin said drawings Figure l is a somewhat diagrammatic sectional elevationtaken vertically and longitudinally of the press;

Figure 2 is a similar fragmentary section showing the relations of theburner, air blast, and suction pipe to the sheet and tapes; and

Figure 3 is a figure somewhat similar to Figure 1 showing theapplication of the invention to the delivery mechanism.

The invention is shown applied to a printing press of the cylinder flatbed type which also has a delivery mechanism. It is to be understood,however, that the invention may be applied to any paper sheet handlingor making device, or to other types of presses, and no limitation inthis regard is intended.

Numeral I indicates the bed of a press, 2 the 5 feed table, 3 thecylinder, 4 the stripper fingers, 5 and 6 the feed tape shafts and 'lthe feed tapes. The flystick operating shaft is indicated at 9, theflysticks at it]. The flystick attaching shaft is indicated at II, thisshaft being attached 10 in the usual manner to the shaft 9 as shown inFigure 1 when the delivery mechanism is not being used.

The jogger board is indicated at l5. The jogger box is generallyindicated at I6 and the jog- 15 ger operating strap is shown at IT.Numeral 3 indicates a platform upon which the operator stands, and 23generally indicates a foot lever, pivoted as at 2! to a rod 22. The rod22, in turn,

is pivoted to a shaft 23 which is connected by a 0 mechanism (not shown)for raising the cylinder 3 when the press is stopped. The foot leverpasses through a T-shaped slot 24 and has a pin 25, normally lying abovethe board I8 and adapted when the pedal is moved downwardly 25 to passthrough the transversely extending part or head of the T-shaped slot toa level below the board i8, whereafter by moving the foot lever indirection of the arrow, the pin 25 is brought to a position beneath thelongitudinally extend- 30 ing part or stem of the slot to prevent riseof the foot lever Lmtil said lever is moved in a reverse direction toagain bring the pin in opposition to the transverse portion of the slot.A spring 27 connected respectively to the board and rod 22 tends toautomatically raise the lever to the position shown in Figure 1.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2: Numeral 30 indicates a burner tube havingburner openings 3| from which a row of flames 32 applies heat to the topsurface or printed side of a sheet 33 as it is fed. The application offlame is made transversely at .a point adjacent the cylinder, and abovethe tripper fingers 4 and tapes I and rear- Wardly of the outer ends ofthe fiysticks III in direction of the cylinder. This tube is spaced theproper distance from the sheet to get the greatest amount of heat withthe least risk of burning. The length of the tube is substantially equalto the width of the paper being fed so that flame is applied in atransverse line entirely across the sheet.

Arranged above and against the burner tube 35 is a hot air blast tube 35. The tube has openings 35 arranged substantially at the angle shown,

to blast the air glancingly in a forward direction against the sheet,forwardly of the point of application of flame by the burner tube 36. Inthis way, the heat is spread over a relatively large area entirelyacross the sheet and is spread well forwardly of the actual area ofapplication, thus causing the heat to be supplied substantially over theentire surface of the sheet as it is fed.

The tube 34 being placed directly against the burner tube is highlyheated thereby. This highly heated air is supplied under the properregulated pressure to the blast tube 34 by means of an air fan or pump3i, having .a suitable intake or suction pipe or line 38 and a suitablepressure or blast pipe or line 39. The blast pipe is suitably connectedto the blast tube 34. The pump is driven by a motor, not shown, and anysuitable type of pump and connections may be used. In this instance, thepump is mounted on the cylinder gear guard. It is contemplated herein touse the hot air by itself independently of the burner and to blast thevery hot air diagonally, to spread it in the manner above set forth.

A feature of the invention relates to the heating of the sheet on bothsides, which is herein accomplished by the creating of a suction beneaththe tapes to draw the air downwardly and forwardly .and to prevent wasteof air, and also to pre-heat the air before it is forced to the tube.

, To this end, a suction pipe 38 is arranged as shown in Figures 1 and2, the same being connected by suitable supports 4| to the jogger boardI5, rearwardly of the tape 5! in direction of the cylinder. One end ofthis tube has suction openings 42 'which are pointed upwardly andrearwardly generally in a direction toward the pipes 38 and 34.

Suction line 44 connects this pipe with the suction pipe 38 of the pump,and hot air which passes downwardly through the tapes during theintervals when no sheets are being fed is preheated and returned to thepump. In this way the heated air is shot downwardly between the beltsand the flysticks when no paper is passed, is sucked into the tube 40and is delivered to the suction side of the fan 'or pump. By drawing theheat downwardly below the sheet, a heated film or atmosphere ismaintained both above and below the sheetfland both sides are heated anddried, and static electric effects are eliminated.

By this means the paper is relatively highly heated over practically itsentire surface and curling and folding of the sheet as it travels isprevented and thorough drying of the ink is accomplished. Jogging up ismade easier in the bindery and there are no folded sheets to beunfolded. Moreover, when a slitter is used, there is no curling in anyof the sheets, all being held fiat by the air blast. On the particulartype of press herein shown, anywhere from one to two hours time is savedon a ten thousand sheet run. With this device, backing up can be startedimmediately, whereas heretofore where printing included a large numberof half tone impressions, it was necessary to wait for two hours or moreto back up.

'It appears that the forceful application of the warm or hot .airglancingly against the sheet immediately after application of flameheat, acts, so to speak, to sweep the sheet clear of the static electriceffect.

Numeral 36 indicates a sheet or sheets of material acting to facilitateconduction of heat from the burner to the air blast pipe, and as a guardto substantially prevent radiation in a rearward direction.

Another feature of this invention relates to the application of theinvention to the delivery mechanism, so that there are successiveapplications of hot air blasting to the sheet, and so that after eachsheet is delivered into the jogger box, hot air is blasted against andentirely across the top surface of the sheet as it lies piled in thebox, the heat blast being twice applied to each sheet. The inventiontherefore includes the application of simultaneous pressure and heat ofa hot air blast, and of a flame, as well as the application of hot airblast to the sheet after delivery in the jogger box.

' Referring to Figure 3 in which the proper adjustr'nents and transferof the flysticks, have been made to make the delivery mechanismoperative. The flysticks H) are now non-swingingly attached by the rod ll to the delivery carriage 50 moving on the usual tracks 59. The usualmechanism is provided for operating the carriage, and includes the arm5!, connecting link52 and arm 53 operating shaft 54 journaled insuitable bearings 55. To the shaft 55, is attached the arm 56 in turnoperating the carriage 50 through the usual links El. The generaloperation of the delivery mechanism is so well known that furtherdescription is thought unnecessary.

Attached to and movable with the carriage 50, below the point ofattachment of the flysticks, is an air blast tube 59 having suitableopenings 60 directed downwardly as shown upon the top sheet 20 in thejogger box it. This tube receives a supply of hot air through flexibletube 62 attached at one end to tube 63 of the air blast tube 59 andattached at the opposite end to a nipple connected with a valve 66, inturn connected by a nipple to an elbow 6'! attached to the end of theair blast passage 34. Any suitable connections can be made for thispurpose, it being understood, of course, that when the deliverymechanism is not being used, the air connection 62 and the valve 66 canbe dispensed with. The air for tubes 34, 59 may be heated by means otherthan the burner 39, although the detail wherein heating is accomplishedby burner 30 is also claimed. All connections are, of course, so placedas not to interfere with the proper operation of any of the parts of themachine. Certain phases of my invention are considered broader than themere details.

It is evident that hot air will be blasted against the sheet from thetube 59, both as the carriage moves forwardly and as it movesrearwarclly. This is itself a valuable feature of the invention, andalso is a feature in conjunction with the application of heat fromflame, and witha hot air blast as described for the form shown in Figure1.

It is noted that the heat for both air blast systems can be provided bya single burner, and that both air blasts are operated from the sameblower and that the preheating suction pipe 48 can operate both when thedelivery is and is not being used.

Another feature of the invention relates to means for shutting off thegas supply to the burner 38 when the press stops. This is advisablebecause of the fire hazard when the burner 30 continues to operate withthe press inoperative.

Broadly the idea is to interrupt the gas supply to the burner as aresult of the operation of some part of the press which is operated whenit is desired to stop the press, and to relight the burner when thereverse operation takes place. Such a part has been previouslydescribed, to-wit the cylinder-raising foot lever 20. The burner ispreferably of the Bunsen type having the usual air mixer generallyindicated at and of course provided with a pilot which, however, has notbeen shown. The gas supply connection is indicated at H, and a valvecontrolling the supply to the burner is shown at 12. A second valve isindicated at 73 and is shown in Figure 1 in its open position. The valvehandle is attached at one end to a flexible cable which runs over afirst pulley l6 and then over a second pulley 11, the end cord beingattached as at 18 to the lower end of the foot lever 29. When the lever26 is depressed to bring the pin 25 below the board l8, the valve isclosed and the burner operation is stopped. The depression of the leveralways accompanies the operation of stopping the press, and the releaseof this lever or pedal always accompanies the operation of starting. Asbefore stated, after the pin is brought to a point below the level ofthe board N3 the lever is moved in direction of the arrow or, in thisinstance, to the left to lock it in its lower position. To unlock it, itis merely moved to the right to bring the pin in opposition to the slot,when upon release it automatically moves to the position shown in Figurel of the drawings. The result is opening of the valve 73 and relightingof the burner.

As a result of the efficiency of this device in thoroughly eliminatingstatic, the necessity for slip-sheeting is also avoided, because withthe static thoroughly eliminated no offsetting from one sheet to anothertakes place, whatever the proportion of the inked surface on the sheetis. The elimination of slip-sheeting means a large saving in time andtherefore in expense of operation.

In cases where the job has been gotten as a result of close competitiveestimates, the necessity for slip-sheeting might involve such an amountof extra expense, as to result in a loss of the contractors profit, oreven cause him a loss of money.

Another important result is the avoidance of necessity for highlyheating the press room, which heating causes much discomfiture to theoperators. By my invention, the heat as applied, acts (in addition toits static eliminating function) to heat the ink plate and facilitatethe transfer of ink to form rollers and type. It is noted that the inkplate reciprocates below the tapes. By placing the suction pipe 58 atthe level shown (which is substantially at the level of reciprocation ofthe ink plate) the heat is drawn toward the ink plate, and since thisdevice has come into use it is no longer necessary to resort to heatingof the ink plates or rollers, by other means.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination with a printing press, including feed tapes, a burnertube arranged over the tapes and adapted to apply flame heat directly tothe printed side of a sheet carried on the tapes, an air pipe havingopenings adapted for blasting hot air also against the printed side ofthe sheet downwardly and forwardly in direction of travel of the sheetto spread the air, and a tube arranged below the tapes forwardly of theair pipe in direction of sheet motion, and having openings therein andmeans for creating a suction in the pipe.

2. In combination with a printing press, including feed tapes, a burnertube adapted to apply flame heat directly to a sheet carried on thetapes, an air pipe having openings adapted for blasting hot air alsoagainst the sheet forwardly in direction of travel of the sheet tospread the air, a tube arranged at that side of the tapes opposite theair pipe and forwardly of said pipe in direction of sheet motion, andhaving openings therein, and means for creating a blasting pressure inthe air pipe and suction in the tube, said air pipe being heated by saidburner tube. 3. In combination with a paper sheet feeding device of theintermittent feeding type including feed tapes, means to apply flameheat to a sheet on the tapes, means to apply an air blast to the sheetin a direction forwardly of the zone of application of the flame heatand slantingly forwardly in direction of travel of the sheet to spreadthe air, said means being adapted to be highly heated by contact withthe flame heat applying means, a blower and connections by which itcreates blasting pressure in the air blast applying means, meansarranged below the tapes and connected with the suction side of theblower and adapted to gather heated air which is projected downwardlybetween the feeding elements during non-feeding periods of the sheetsand deliver said pre-heated air to the suction side of the blower.

4. In combination with a printing press of the cylinder flat bed typeincluding feeding tapes, a delivery mechanism and jogger box, a burnerarranged over the tapes and adapted to apply flame heat to a sheetcarried on and moved by the tapes, an air blast pipe heated by theburner and having openings adapted for blasting air against the sheetforwardly of zone of application of burner heat and glancingly forwardlyin direction of travel of the sheet, a blower for forcing air underpressure through the blast pipe, a perforated suction tube arrangedbeneath the tapes for recovering heated air which passes downwardlythrough the tapes when no sheet is being fed, means connecting thesuction tube with the suction side of the blower and a second perforatedair blast pipe mounted on and movable with the delivery mechanism andadapted to blast air against each sheet after delivery into the joggerbox, and means by which the air for the second blast pipe is heated anddelivered under pressure thereto.

5. In combination with a printing press including feeding means, adelivery mechanism and a jogger box, a burner arranged over and close tothe feeding means and adapted to directly apply flame heat to a sheetcarried thereon, a first air blast pipe having openings adapted forjetting highly heated air also against the sheet forwardly of the zoneof application of burner heat, means for heating and blowing air underpressure through the pipe, and a second perforated air blast pipemounted on and movable with the delivery mechanism and adapted to blastair against each sheet after delivery into the jogger box, heated airfor blasting from said air blast pipes being supplied by said means forheating and blowing air under pressure through said first pipe.

6. In combination with a printing press including a cylinder and feedtapes, a burner adapted for applying flame heat to the upper or printedside of a sheet moving on the tapes and applying the heat in a linetransversely of the sheet and substantially entirely thereacross, an airpipe having openings for forcibly jetting hot air against the sheet tohold it on the tapes and prevent curling of its forward edge, andarranged to direct the air glancingly against the sheet in direction ofits movement so that it will contact the sheet substantially over itsentire area, means for supplying heated air under pressure to said pipeincluding an air pump, a perforated air tube arranged transversely ofthe press beneath the tapes well forwardly of the first air pipe, andmeans connecting said tube with the air pump for creating a suction inthe tube for recovering heated air which passes through the tapes whennot interrupted by a sheet and for creating a sheet or body of heatedair through which the paper passes so that the lower unprinted surfaceof the sheet is also air- 5 heated.

HENRY J MCCOY.

